Harnessing Complexity by Using HTML to Mimic Black Box Abstraction Found in Programming Technology

••• today's entry continues here below •••

It is not the easiest thing to do .. this lifting of text and transferring it to a newly-created page. Some techno-geeky massaging is required. I won't bore you, but it definitely tends toward the tedious.

Okay, I have just lifted this section of text and transferred it to its own page .. as an example of what I am talking about here.

» The Hyperlink Connects Two Things that are Somehow Related

In the title I use the acronym HTML .. but I really mean » the hyperlink.

The hyperlink is a part of HTML, so my title is not inaccurate. But it is the hyperlink-feature of HTML that I am specifically referring to when I talk about the process of abstraction.

Programming languages use black box abstraction as a way to hide the complexity found in procedures (how to do things .. how to execute instructions).

Well, the language doesnt specifically use black box abstraction. Rather the programmer uses the features of the language in order to conceal complexity by using a technique referred to as black box abstraction.

» Experimenting with the Features of Third Millennium Languages

But I use the concept of (black box) abstraction as a way to hide the complexity found in some of my ideas, or in some of my experiences. In some of my writing. There is definitely elements of experimentation.

This is one of the reasons why I so appreciate Ariana playing with me. You can't really do this kind of thing by yourself. You can't access these kinds of places by yourself.

James Joyce is known for experimenting with language .. and he may very well be the best writer of the entire twentieth century. If such a label is even possible.

I could definitely feel something inside that was desiring to grow beyond myself.

This is very much about the artist/athlete mindset .. where you are striving to be bigger, faster, smarter, cooler, wittier, more educated, more spiritual, a better lover .. I could go on, but you feel me.

And what if I meet a real cool girl? What if she is a super-hottie who can have any guy she wants?

What if I want to impress her? What chance do I have? Me .. a starving writer.

I am not saying that this is the reason why I felt drawn to technology represented by black box abstraction .. but I am not denying it, either.

» Experimentally-Applied Information Technologies Designed to Tame Complexity

At some level all languages, and all writing systems, share similarities. So I fuck around and see what happens when I apply what I learned about programming languages to what I know about written language.

This here might actually be why I am the greatest writer who ever lived.

» It Made Me Uncomfortable when People Called Attention to My Writing-Skills

I am actually not a braggy type-of-person .. far as my writing-ability and craftsmanship goes (.. and writing is intimately related to living and imagination)  .. I am not a braggy type of writer .. like Hemingway tends to be.

Calling attention to my writing skills and gifts and insights .. this used to make me uncomfortable .. because it made me feel like I was supposed to pursue that direction more vigorously (.. than just playing around hobbie-like).

» Known for a History of Insanity and Horrible Deaths

Because I knew the general trajectory of the writer .. which was leveled at a decidedly downward slope.

And sometimes severely downward .. with a big pile of billowing smoke rising up from the crash site at the end of that slope.

» Right Up My Alley

And the voice in my head said, "Dude .. this is right up your alley. You love shit like this. You love a good challenge."

Here I am fanning out my writing peacock feathers because I am trying to impress this girly-peacock.

I do not actually understand it .. but girls respond to my writing. I will fan out my feathers for her and say, "How you like me now, girly?"

» Handling the Complexity

But .. if you have been following along with any kind of diligence .. then you know that I have a handle on this thing .. this complex thing.

I have broken things down and built them back up from the sub-atomic level .. and I actually have a handle on it.

I have demonstrated my ability to handle complexity.

You need organizational skills for that. You need well-developed organizational skills.

» To Him Complexities Seemed Plain

There is a line in the Dead Can Dance song titled » How Fortunate The Man With None .. that says, speaking of Solomon » "To him complexities seemed plain."

These lyrics are food for thought because the song suggests that the wisdom that allowed Solomon to see complexities plainly ..

.. is the same wisdom that allowed him to see that » all is vanity. This is the subtext, if you think about it, behind what Brad's character Westray says here, when he says "It's all shit."

» Writing Directly to Different People Can be Used as an Organizational Structure

I certainly did not plan it this way .. but I have noticed that I use the habit of writing directly to certain people .. I use this as an organizational structure of sorts.

This is because I write different things to different people.

But I would also file this technique under the heading of 'creativity' .. because I can write some things to some people that I can't write to others.

I have tried to elaborate on this topic .. but it sounds crazy. So perhaps I will return later .. when I can elaborate without sounding like a nut-case.

» Complexity is the Fundamental Problem

In this 2-min video, Jordan Peterson, a clinical psychologist, says that complexity is the fundamental problem of life.

He says that you think, as a practicing psychologist, that people will come to you with their mental illnesses. But that this is almost never true.

People come to you, he says, because their lives get » "so damn complicated that they cannot stay on top of them in any way that doesnt look like they're just going to get more complicated."

And then they start cracking .. either physically or emotionally or psychologically, or some combination of these.

» Complexity vs Chaos

I know exactly what he is saying .. but I dont know if I would characterize it that way.

He is referring to problems in life that we must deal with. The size and number of these problems is what he refers to as complexity.

I call cousin Patti whenever I get to the end of my rope. She is remarkably good at putting things in perspective.

To me, complexity is sometimes a necessary and even a desirable thing.

I would have to think about it, but the thing that Jordan is referring to .. I would probably call that » chaos. Which I have defined as » more change than your ass can handle.

» The Older Generation is Struggling to Deal with the Pace of Change

This is one of the things that separates the younger generation from the older. You can see the older generation struggling to deal with the pace of change.

I bet that the theoretical physicist Leonard Mlodinow would agree with me here. And his mother, too. [ Leonard's wikipedia page lists Richard Feynman as an influence. ]

You hear older Americans saying things like, "I dont recognize my country any more." That's because we have come a long way since the 1950's.

This is why they keep trying to artificially return the culture back to that of the 1950's .. when things were moving much more slowly.

This is not their time. Their time has come and gone .. and this is why they feel like a fish out of water.

Meanwhile, the kids are saying, "Welcome to the new age." Because now is their time .. regardless of what Ben Sasse happens to say.

» The Nuclear Industry Involves a High Degree of Complexity & Technical Sophistication

I have heard it said that the only industry to rival the nuclear industry ..

.. in terms of complexity and the degree of technical sophistication required .. is the » aerospace industry.

I do not know for a fact that this is true .. and it seems difficult to compare .. but such a factoid would not surprise me.

Tho I have seen some documentaries on these particle accelerators / colliders .. and they definitely seem to involve a high degree of technical sophistication.

» Spielberg Tackles Complexity with Ready Player One

Speaking of handling complexity and making it look easy .. I couldnt help but notice what Zak said here at t=1:30.

Zak is writing Ready Player One with the author of the book (Ernie Cline).

Zak talked about complexity and said, "It's definitely the most complex script I've ever worked on."

He also said that Spielberg said this is the most complex movie that he has ever worked on.

Doesnt Spielberg command respect .. like the people suggested who were being interviewed?

He doesnt seem at all like an arm-twister. I feel that it is because of his skill set. His impressive skill set .. the fruits of which have been on display for decades.

I have been at parties at the homes of Film school people .. where they are badmouthing Spielberg for selling out to commercial interests.

And I would think, "I cannot believe what I am hearing. But I probably shouldnt say anything."

» Every Individual Section Heading Comes with a Direct-Link

Have you noticed how I have coded in direct-links to each and every section heading?

The little double-arrow symbol [ » ] included in every section heading is where I set the in-page anchor-link.

That takes a little extra effort, yes .. and perhaps I will take advantage of that link sometime in the future, or maybe I won't. 

But my point is that I can .. I can take advantage of that coded-link in the future. If I want to.

The practice of coding in direct links to each section .. makes me give a little more thoughtful consideration to the title I choose.

It also makes me less likely to write a new section .. unless I really-really want to. Unless I am feeling genuinely motivated to write.

» It Requires Extra Work to Create a Structure that Harnesses Complexity

At first I only created the in-page anchor-link if I knew for a fact that I would be accessing that link.

But then I found that it interrupted my creative flow .. whenever I had to go back and create a new in-page link on some previously written page .. this sucks.

You dont want to get bogged down in the technical code. It is a completely different mindset. I try to do all of one or the other. Because going back-n-forth between technical code and creative flow .. that is not easy.

And sure, I still need to do this, from time to time, when I need access to a specific part of an already-linked section. But not nearly as often now.

This way is more work, but it is definitely better. (For me. For the way I work.) Every artist needs to engineer a way that works best for them.

» The Invisible Structure Underlying My Abstracted Organizational Strategy

And yes, I will admit that there are times when I surprise even myself .. with the underlying structure behind the functional aspects of my organizational skills.

Who can see my underlying structure?

» I Can Feel the Effect that She is having on My Writing

I call attention to where I refer to myself as the greatest writer who ever lived .. because this is the effect that Ariana has on me. I can feel her bringing out that aspect of my personality.

I would normally never write such a thing. This is why I am blaming the whole thing on her.

» You have Never Met Anything the Likes of Me Before

Sometimes I write to Ariana and tell her, "You have never met anything the likes of me before, girly."

This is because I can feel her provoking parts of me that I normally try to keep hidden.

Someday I should try to put into words this place. I know that I have the goods.

In the past girls have reacted in ways that freaked me out .. when I revealed too much of this place to them too quickly.

I surprise myself when I write these things. "How is she doing that?" I will wonder.

» Everybody Knows that You're to Blame

Speaking of blaming .. girly, did you happen to see Jon Batiste performing at the Grammys? .. where he sang that song by Fats Domino?

In secret guy-talk (that women can't understand) he was letting me know there that he knows you are really the one to blame.

» Katy Perry Knows

Katy Perry knows exactly what I am talking about here.

That is so cute. She holds up her hands and tells these guys, "It's not your language. It's just for us."

Then she tells him that she loves him. Very convincingly she tells him.

It seems farfetched that two total strangers would feel for each other something that they would characterize as love.

But there is indeed a thing that you feel with another person with whom you mutually share some un-obvious thing .. whatever that might happen to be.

Who has not experienced such a thing? Who does not know exactly what I am talking about here?

She looks good. She looks healthy. She looks happy. She looks content. In her element. Very confident. Good for her.

I can see why Russell was attracted to her.

I am not going to say that she was flirting with the audience .. but she definitely knows how to play to an audience.

Her hair is growing back.

She certainly has a flair for the dramatic. She obviously enjoys it. I can see why they would want to hire her.

I have a story about the singer-girl with this style of haircut.

I may return to share this story .. but my takeaway is » it's a lot for a guy to handle.

Would you characterize this style of hair » the Annie Lennox?

Of course, if you ever ask Jon about it, he will be able to "neither confirm nor deny." But everybody pretty much agrees that you're to blame.

These girls do that sparkly thing that they do with their microphones and with their voices. Who can resist this kind of thing? Show me the man.

» She Makes Me Feel Chest-Beating Aggressive Sometimes

I cannot count the number of times that I have written » "Girly, sometimes you make me feel aggressive .. that's not usually a good thing for girls."

» Evoking & Playing with the Werewolf

I guess you could apply the werewolf pattern here. There is definitely a seemingly superhuman strength that comes over you .. where a girl has got you number .. and she has you ferociously turned on.

I try to keep that werewolf chained .. but some girls seem to play to him directly. It is as if I am not really the one who they want to play with .. but rather, they want to play with my werewolf.

Most perplexing for me was how these girls knew about my werewolf .. even before I had showed him to them.

I could feel them going straight for it .. evoking it. Eliciting it. Flirting with it. Teasing it. Taunting it. Daring it.

I try to warn them .. that this is not a wise course of action for the uninitiated.

What I have found is that there are indeed some girls who can handle me full fucking strength .. but not many.

» Same Principle of Abstraction Substituting Stories for Instructions

But (black box) abstraction is a concept that I can feel myself employing. It is a technology, a technique .. a geeky thing for a geek to explore.

I put parentheses around the term black box because my form of abstraction resembles a conceptual black box .. but it is not really a black box .. in that my pages dont actually do anything.

They dont execute a set of instructions. Rather, they merely contain information and ideas and concepts and a record of various experiences. (Stories.)

Procedural knowledge is the knowing » how to do something. Learning by doing. How can you really ever know about love .. if you have never loved?

It's not really a big deal, but I want to state that I understand the differences in abstraction between black box and what I do.

And as I write about a certain thing, about a certain topic, about a certain experience .. then, in the future, I am able to use that 'platform' so to speak, in my future writing.

And a key question that the writer must ask himself, and on a regular basis, too, is » "What am I gonna write about?"

And sometimes I will see an interesting thing appear, or develop .. and I will think, "Ooh .. what I could do with that."

I can build on top of that using technique of black box abstraction. This is the thing, I can see now, that lets me go as far with my writing as I have been able to go. I can see that.

And Ariana somehow lets me explore places that I simply would not be able to explore without her. A part of me does not like to admit that .. but it is obvious at this stage.

» Waxing Abstract

Sometimes I write that I can feel myself waxing abstract .. and that this somehow signals to me that I should quit along this tangent, this path, this particular direction. This trajectory.

Well .. this is the reason why I am reluctant to wax abstract .. because I am already planning to use this particular page as an abstraction itself.

And from this abstraction, I am able to build out my impressive creation in an even more exotic direction. A cool direction. A curious direction. A dangerous direction. An erotic direction. A social direction.

I could continue along these lines for quite some length .. but you feel me.

And the feeling here is that I want to walk down these paths amid real, lived life experiences .. both the good and the bad. Living real life .. it's definitely not for the faint of heart.

The end. ■ This saga continues here » Does that not Strike You as a Curious Thing? (Jan 11, 2018).

Return to the page where this entry originated » The Place Where Imagination becomes Reality (25 Dec 2017).

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